Boaters: Throttle Back, Save Gas, Save Manatees!
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| Living up to their last name, Bob & Mariela Care post one of the Club's free dock signs to help the manatees who often wander into their back yard canal. (Photo courtesy Bob & Mariela Care)
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For further information, contact:
Janice Nearing, Director of Public Relations
Phone: (407) 539-0990
E-mail: jnearing@savethemanatee.org
Note: An electronic version of this press release and a high resolution jpeg (300 dpi) of a manatee image are available upon request.
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For Immediate Release: June 16, 2008
The 4th of July weekend is one of the busiest holiday weekends of the year, especially on the waterways. The Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission’s 2007 Boating Accident Statistical Report states, “With well over 1 million vessels registered in the state, Florida leads the nation in the number of vessels . . . and has the highest number of boating fatalities annually.” Boat traffic can double or triple on holiday weekends, and dangerous conditions for the slow-moving manatees, as well as for families out boating, can increase dramatically.
“Manatee deaths from boat collisions continue to be the leading known cause of manatee mortality,” said Patrick Rose, Executive Director of Save the Manatee Club. “This year, with gas prices on the rise, it makes good sense for the boating community to throttle back – take some of the pressure off their pocketbooks and at the same time help make Florida’s busy waterways safer. Going slower may improve your boat’s gas mileage and certainly improves the manatees’ chances of making it through the long weekend uninjured.”
Throttling back also reduces boat wakes, which can cause damage to property, such as seawalls and moored boats.
To help protect manatees on a year-round basis, boaters should follow all posted boat speed regulations, slow down if manatees are in the vicinity, and stay in deep water channels when possible. If you see an injured, dead, tagged or orphaned manatee, or a manatee who is being harassed, call the Florida Fish & Wildlife Conservation Commission at 1-888-404-FWCC (3922) or #FWC or *FWC on your cellular phone, or use VHF Channel 16 on your marine radio.
Also, find out how you can make your own boating experience safer by taking a boating safety course. For more information on classes, go to the Manatee Protection Tips for Boaters page.
Florida business owners, marinas, dive shops, parks, libraries, and schools who are interested in obtaining a free “Boat Safely” manatee conservation poster should contact Save the Manatee Club via e-mail at education@savethemanatee.org, by regular mail at 500 N. Maitland Ave., Maitland, FL 32751, or by calling toll free at 1-800-432-JOIN (5646). Please include your contact information along with full information on where the poster will be displayed.
Florida boaters can also request a free, “Please Slow: Manatees Below” bright yellow waterproof banner by contacting Save the Manatee Club via e-mail at education@savethemanatee.org. Include full mailing information along with the area where you boat in Florida. The banners can be used to quickly alert other boaters that manatees are present in the area.
Also, if you are a Florida shoreline property owner, you can get a free aluminum sign for your dock which reads, “Please Watch for Manatees: Operate With Care.”
Mariela Care and her husband, Bob, recently requested one of the signs to post along their canal located in Plantation Key in the Florida Keys. “I often see manatees out in the back, and I’m concerned, as I’ve yet to see one without scars,” said Mariela. “I’m hoping the dock sign will make people more careful as they motor along the canal, knowing that manatees could be around. We are so lucky to be able to share the habitat with this incredible species, and we need to give more importance to these beautiful animals.”
Florida shoreline property owners can request a free “Please Watch for Manatees” aluminum sign by contacting Save the Manatee Club via e-mail at education@savethemanatee.org, by regular mail at 500 N. Maitland Ave., Maitland, FL 32751, or by calling toll free at 1-800-432-JOIN (5646). Include your name, mailing and e-mail addresses, and the address where the sign will be posted (if different).
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